Interbrand releases 2014 Best Global Green Brands Report

Ford claims the #1 spot - Toyota falls to #2; IKEA and Zara are the top risers; Brands that commit to creating shared value continue to outperform.

For the first time in the history of Interbrand's Best Global Green Brands report, there is a new #1 brand: Ford. Toyota, which had held the top spot since the report debuted in 2011, falls to #2 with Honda (#3), Nissan (#4) and Panasonic (#5) rounding out the top five and maintaining each of their 2013 positions.

Interbrand's Best Global Green Brands report examines the gap that exists between a brand's environmental performance and consumers' perceptions of that performance.

When identifying the top 50 Best Global Green Brands each year, Interbrand starts with the 100 brands that make up its annual Best Global Brands report. Brands that appear on this annual ranking have a global presence and a demonstrated record of delivering value to their stakeholders. Interbrand then conducts extensive consumer research to capture public perception of the brands' sustainable or green practices and compares that to environmental or sustainability performance data collected and analysed by Deloitte.

"This year, the Best Global Green Brands report focuses on the power of participation and collective action," noted Jez Frampton, Interbrand's Global Chief Executive Officer. "The report suggests that every constituency - businesses, consumers, employees, suppliers, governments and investors - will need to be engaged and willing to collaborate in order to take Corporate Citizenship and sustainability initiatives to the next level. We celebrate this year's 50 Best Global Green Brands for having done exactly that and, in some cases, more."

Understanding the gap that exists between a company's actual Corporate Citizenship practices and consumers' awareness of those practices is vital to building brand value. Today, consumers hold the world's leading brands to an extremely high standard and expect such brands to act responsibility. If consumers feel as though they've been misled, brands will suffer the consequences.

This year's top finding's include:

Sony (#7) and adidas (#8) enter into the top 10 for the first time, while Johnson & Johnson falls six places to #12 and Volkswagen falls nine places to #16.

Top Risers: IKEA climbed 14 spots to secure the #19 position while Zara also climbed 14 places to claim the #34 position. Philips moved up nine places to take the #14 spot and adidas jumped up seven places to #8.

Automotive, electronic and technology brands occupy nearly 50 percent of the overall ranking; 10 brands hail from the automotive sector, while 12 brands come from the electronics and technology sectors.

Brands within the financial services sector struggle to become sustainability leaders: Allianz and Citi fall off this year's ranking, while AXA falls one place to take the #45 position and Santander moves up two places to #44.

Three new brands joined the 2014 ranking, including Chevrolet (#32), Disney (#49), and Heineken (#50).

Interbrand's 2014 Best Global Green Brand

2014 Overview: The Power of Participation

In addition to identifying the top 50 Best Global Green Brands, this year's report also examines the power of participation and collection action. Interbrand contends that, in order for society and businesses to meet consumers' growing demands for a more sustainable future, a new level of cooperation is needed. Every constituency - including consumers, corporations, employees, suppliers, governments and investors-must be engaged in order to take efforts around sustainability and Corporate Citizenship initiatives to the next level.

Automotive brands continue to focus on efficiency and style; Ford, Toyota, and Honda lead in the categoryAutomotive brands make up 20 percent of the top 50 brands and represent four of the top five brands in the report. The leaders of the sector include Ford (#1), Toyota, (#2), Honda (#3) and Nissan (#4).

The demand for electric vehicles is growing and is forcing automakers to enter into this market and expand their product lines. More than 36 new hybrid and electric cars were launched in 2013, giving consumers more fuel-efficient options than ever.

With new environmental action committees in place, improved employee engagement around sustainability, better water/energy/emissions intensities, enhanced green build policies and increased waste recycling, Ford claims the #1 position in this year's Best Global Green Brands report. Ford's portfolio also boasts five electric vehicles: two plug-in hybrids, two hybrids and one all electric. It has also put considerable effort into hydrogen and fuel cell research. Recyclable material is used in 41 different fabrics across Ford's different lines and soybean-based foam cushions are used in all of its North American-made vehicles. (The soybean initiative saves the company approximately 5 million pounds of petroleum annually.)

Toyota falls to the #2 spot after reigning as the top Best Global Breen Brand for the past three years. Toyota continues to pioneer and innovate in the fuel-efficient automobile market. It boasts more than 2 million hybrid vehicles in the United States, which is more than any other automotive manufacturer.

Honda (#3) is involved in a variety of Corporate Citizenship and sustainable activities. The company has remained transparent over the years about its efforts and, as a result, has witnessed a high score in regards to perception. In September 2013, the company earned one of the highest disclosure scores among all global companies in the CDP Global 500 Climate Change report. The report analyses how the world's 500 largest companies go about addressing global warming and disclosing information around greenhouse gas (CHG) emissions.

While the electronics and technology sectors represent nearly 25 percent of the overall ranking, brands within those two sectors also carry some of the largest gap scores-both positive and negative. An indication that these brands either need to do more around sustainability or work harder to improve consumer perceptions of those initiatives.Panasonic (#5), as the leading electronics brand, boasts a gap score of +13.9. The positive gap score indicates that its performance score is higher than its perception score. In other words, the brand is embracing opportunities to be a more responsible brand, but it needs to take measurable steps to communicate its efforts to consumers.

Last year, IKEA announced that it would be teaming up with Nissan (#4) and energy provider Ecotricity to install electric car charging stations for customers at all UK stores by the end of 2013. IKEA is the first major retailer to offer electric charging points - a proactive strategy that is helping to meet a growing demand from IKEA customers.

Zara is committed to implementing sustainable practices across its operations - from introducing a waste management policy across its flagships to educating its staff on sustainable practices. By 2020, all of Zara's existing stores around the world aim to be 100 percent eco-efficient. Zara's ongoing improvements have translated into a strong performance and perception scores, making it the top-rising brand in 2014, along with IKEA.

Philips, having jumped from #23 to #14, remains committed to making the world healthier and more sustainable through innovation. The company's EcoVision program aims to improve its overall energy efficiency through meaningful, sustainable innovations. By transforming its employees' knowledge and skills into products and services that are of value in the marketplace, the company is able to lead change in a profitable way.

adidas takes a four-pronged "Fair Play" approach towards its sustainability initiatives. Whether it is sourcing and developing more environmentally-friendly materials, enforcing basic employee and human rights or reducing water use and pollution, adidas' four pillars provide a conceptual framework that enables its stakeholders to better understand, assess and realise the multinational footwear and sportswear company's sustainability goals.

New entrants (by rank): Chevrolet, Disney and Heineken enter into the report for the first timeThis year, Chevrolet (#32) announced a major milestone, achieving 7 million metric tons of carbon reduction. The company is also promoting the widespread adoption of a new methodology. The methodology is financed by the automaker and aims to reward US-based colleges and universities for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. The methodology, developed under the Verified Carbon Standards (VCS), helps to quantify reductions in combustion and electricity emissions.

With a strong global presence in over 40 countries, Disney (#49) is committed to minimising its environmental footprint through a set of long-term goals first established in 2009. Disney is not only transparent about its Corporate Citizenship efforts, but also ensures they are incorporated into the overall business strategy.

Heineken (#50) is now three years into its sustainable strategy: "Brewing a Better Future." Heineken has made great progress across four main areas of focus: water, CO2, sourcing and responsible consumption.

Criteria for inclusion and methodologyThe foundation of the annual Best Global Green Brands report is Interbrand's annual Best Global Brands report. The Best Global Brands report is published each fall and determines the world's 100 most valuable brands - brands that have a global presence and a record of delivering value to stakeholders.

To become one of the top 50 Best Global Green Brands, organisations must perform well in terms of both sustainability performance and perception. Brands are measured against two sets of criteria:

Performance: Organisations must demonstrate that they source, produce, and distribute products and services in an environmentally-responsible manner.

Perception: Organisations must work to build value amongst key audiences by credibly conveying the benefits of their environmental practices.

What Interbrand refers to as "the gap" is the difference between a brand's performance and perception scores.

A positive gap indicates sustainability performance is actually higher than consumers perceive it to be.

A negative gap indicates consumers perceive a brand to be more of a sustainable leader than it actually is.

Perception assessmentInterbrand examines how a brand's sustainability efforts are perceived by consumers. Interbrand conducts a survey in the 10 largest global economies (based on GDP), interviewing more than 10,000 consumers. Each brand is assessed by 1,250 consumers in terms of Authenticity, Relevance, Differentiation, Consistency, Presence, and Understanding of environmental claims.

Performance assessmentDeloitte examines each brand's performance in terms of its sustainability/environmental initiatives as an input to Interbrand's overall scoring methodology. For the purposes of the annual Best Global Green Brands report, Deloitte developed a corporate environmental performance methodology based on publicly available data drawn from such sources as Corporate Social Responsibility/Sustainability Reports, Carbon Disclosure Project Responses, Annual Reports, 10-K filings, Company Websites, and the ASSET4 Database from Thomson Reuters. A brand's Green Performance Score is composed of 83 metrics upon which each brand is ranked. The metrics evaluate companies' disclosure and environmental performance across six pillars: Governance, Operations, Transportation and Logistics, Stakeholder Engagement, and Supply Chain. Such data is then inputted into Interbrand's overall scoring methodology.

Overall scoreThe Best Global Green Brand report's overall scores are calculated by combining the standardised performance and perception scores. A discount factor is applied in those cases where positive perceptions of the brand outweigh a company's actual sustainability performance. The final ranking is based on companies' overall scores relative to other companies and previous years' results.

To learn more about Interbrand's 2014 Best Global Green Brands report or to read insightful interviews with executives at corporations and nonprofits, please visit: www.bestglobalgreenbrands.com.

Based in Johannesburg, with offices in Cape Town, Accra, Gaborone, Lagos and Nairobi, Interbrand Sampson De Villiers acts as a hub for Africa. Increasingly, brands are becoming regional and global. Interbrand serves the world with over 40 offices in more than 25 countries.

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